Orion has begun producing circular carbon black at its ISCC PLUS-certified facility in Qingdao, China, marking a major expansion of its sustainable materials footprint in Asia.
The plant is manufacturing three ECORAX Circular grades — 200, 210 and 215 — using tire pyrolysis oil (TPO) as feedstock. ECORAX 200 is positioned as a hard black for tire applications, while ECORAX 210 and 215 are designed for both tires and mechanical rubber goods (MRG).
“This new capability in China marks a key step in offering circular carbon black grades globally,” Orion CEO Corning Painter said. “The product line extension gives us greater flexibility to meet growing demand for circular products, while maintaining the performance, consistency and quality our customers expect.”
The China ramp-up builds on Orion’s claim of industry leadership in circular carbon black. The company says it was the first producer to manufacture carbon black using 100% TPO and to commercialize multiple ISCC PLUS-certified grades across global facilities.
Expansion is already underway in Europe. Last year, Orion scaled production of ECORAX Circular 200 and 210 at its Jasło, Poland site, significantly increasing commercial volumes of TPO-based output. The ISCC PLUS certification underscores traceability of sustainable raw materials used in production.
ECORAX Circular 200 and 210 are positioned as drop-in replacements for ASTM grades N326 and N330, enabling tire manufacturers to incorporate lower-carbon materials without changing existing performance standards.
Behind the expansion is a tightly controlled production system designed to handle dual feedstocks. Both the China and Poland sites use dedicated storage infrastructure that separates tire pyrolysis oil from conventional carbon black oil before introducing them into the reactor stream.
“We now have the complete infrastructure to receive, store and dose TPO in our production in a completely controlled way,” said Pedro Riveros, senior vice president of Global Rubber Carbon Black at Orion.
“Our technology allows us to modulate the blending ratio of TPO and carbon black oil, enabling us to have a more precise measurement of the TPO content. This is vital for quality consistency and useful for our customers to execute their circular commercial strategies.”
Riveros added, “In Europe, Orion has invested in TPO production and will be the off taker of the circular feedstock at multiple sites on the continent. We will continue to look for opportunities that will support and underpin our global strategy.”
With production now running in both Europe and Asia, Orion is positioning its ECORAX platform as a globally scalable circular materials solution for the tire and rubber industries.
